The second round of the German Kart Championship season in Mülsen had a lot to offer. While Markus Kajak (DKM), Milan Rossi (DJKM), Jayden Thien (DSKC), Devin Titz (DMKM), Bruno Greiling (X30 Junior) and Aaron Garcia Lopez (X30 Senior) won their finals, changing weather conditions on Sunday made for exciting racing. 210 drivers travelled to Saxony and battled for more championship points on the 1,315-metre Arena E race track.

DKM: Reigning champion Markus Kajak wins turbulent finale

In DKM qualifying, David Trefilov (Formula K SRP Factory Team) initially came out on top and was honoured with the 32Five Pole Position Award. However, Dion van Werven (CPB Sport) performed strongly over the course of the heats and secured pole position for the final by winning the Super Heat.

This developed into an eventful race on a dry track. After a good start, van Werven lost ground shortly afterwards. Markus Kajak (Formula K SRP Factory Team) capitalised on this and took the lead early on. The Estonian continuously extended his lead over the course of the race and drove to his first win of the season in a controlled manner. ‘Friday didn't start as we wanted, but we fought our way forward over the two days. After the start of the final, the first few laps were full of battles for position, but when I had a gap to the pursuers, I drove my race and extended my lead.’
 

Behind the winner, however, there were numerous changes of position, with the top ten battling it out for the trophy places. The race was only decided on the start-finish straight. Several drivers collided and retired within sight of the chequered flag. In the end, Robert Kindervater (Birel ART Racing KSW) took second place ahead of Trefilov, Marek Skrivan (IPK Factory Team) and Nico Lemberg (Kali Kart Finland). Following his success, Kajak takes the lead in the overall standings together with Danilo Albanese (KR Motorsport).

DKM championship standings:
1st Markus Kajak (151 points)
2nd Danilo Albanese (151 points)
3rd David Trefilov (143 points)
4th Robert Kindervater (117 points)
5th Emilien Denner (106 points)

DJKM: Milan Rossi celebrates a superior start-finish victory

The Czech Martina Rumlenova (MVM Racing Team) set the first exclamation mark in qualifying, but then suffered a few setbacks and no longer played a role in the battle for victory. Mini newcomer Milan Rossi (DAP Lanari Racing Team) took the provisional lead on Saturday evening. The Super Heat on a wet track was won by Finland's Oiva Vettenranta (Kali Kart Finland), but Rossi maintained pole position for the final.

He then left nothing to chance in the decisive race. The youngster won the start and pulled away from the field early on - his summary was correspondingly satisfied: ‘I was very excited to be on pole position in the new class. But everything went really well and I'm happy with my success.’ There were also few shifts behind the Saarlander during the course of the race. Marc Alexander Reistrup (CRG Holland) drove a controlled race to second place, followed by his team-mate Mattao Mason (CRG Holland). Maël Le Marchand fought his way up to fourth place in the final with five position gains, while Maxim Becker (c4-Racing) took fifth place.

DJKM championship standings:
1st Marc Alexander Reistrup (173 points)
2nd Milan Rossi (171 points)
3rd Mattao Mason (128 points)
4th Erik Poulsen (119 points)
5th Gustav Christensen (100 points)

DSKC: First win of the season for Jayden Thien

After securing pole position at the season opener in Mariembourg, Jayden Thien also set the fastest time in Mülsen and went into the heats in first place in a packed field. However, the Dutchman suffered a setback there and only finished Saturday in 13th place, with his compatriot Jeffrey Fikse initially taking the lead.

There was a change at the top after the Super Heats: Marc Gerstenkorn (Kartshop Ampfing) was at the front of the grid for the final race. However, due to a gearbox problem, the Swiss driver was unable to get away from the start and retired on the first lap. Fikse took the lead, closely followed by Thien, who got off to an excellent start. While Thien took first place in the first half of the race and drove to a clear victory, a tight chasing pack developed behind him. At times, up to nine riders were battling wheel-to-wheel for the front positions. Luis Esser (Arena E Team) moved up to second place, gaining twelve positions. Fikse took third place ahead of Rasmus Buxbom Andersen (Solgat Motorsport) and Matej Preuss (Formula K SRP Factory Team), who finished the final in fifth place.
 

Thien extended his lead in the overall standings and is already looking ahead to Ampfing at the halfway point of the season: ‘I had a good Sunday and we already had a good pace in the Super Heat, which put me in a very positive frame of mind for the final. The race wasn't easy, so I'm all the more pleased about my first win in a shifter kart and am now ready for the next races in the DSKC.’

DSKC championship standings:
1st Jayden Thien (163 points)
2nd Matej Preuss (148 points)
3rd Jeffrey Fikse (122 points)
4th Emanuel Mai (89 points)
5th Marc Gerstenkorn (84 points)

DMKM: Devin Titz prevails in the three-way battle for victory

Maddox Mason (CRG Holland) from South Africa set the best time in qualifying and secured pole position for the heats. However, Devin Titz (CRG Holland) then won the heats. This put the Mariembourg winner back in the lead and was a case of déjà vu. As in Belgium, he spun in the Super Heat and dropped back a long way. The heat was won by Alex Huizer (CRG Holland), who moved into pole position for the final. Titz nevertheless started the race from third place due to his pre-race results.

The track was dry again in the final and a close three-way battle developed at the front: Huizer, Ben Schumacher (CRG Holland) and Titz were closely bunched together for long stretches. Titz only took the lead a few laps before the end and pulled away slightly in the final phase. Behind him, Huizer and Schumacher took the other podium places. ‘After the small setback in the Super Heat, the final went really well again. I'm proud of my second win in a row this season,’ beamed the winner.
 

Roman Meister (DAP TB Racing Team) also had a strong weekend: After a technical problem in qualifying, he was last, but fought his way forwards continuously and finished fourth in the end. Jan Ruudi Algre (Formula K SRP Factory Team) from Estonia completed the top five.

DMKM championship standings:
1st Devin Titz (194 points)
2nd Alex Huizer (128 points)
3rd Ben Schumacher (107 points)
4th Henri Möhring (103 points)
5th Jan Ruudi Algre (93 points)

X30 Junior: Bruno Greiling wins on a wet track

Rookie Carlos Nees (Nees Racing) had a perfect start to the second weekend: The youngster left the entire competition behind him in qualifying, but did not manage to defend his top position any further. Ioan Tudor Jercan (Zanchi Motorsport) from Romania led the overall standings after the heats on Saturday. In the Super Heat, Tom Wickop (VM Energy Corse Germany), the winner of Mariembourg, finally drew attention to himself once again and thus took the front row of the grid for the final.

The final race then took place in difficult conditions. The track was wet and demanded full concentration from the drivers. Wickop initially took the lead, but spun on the second lap - the new leader was his team-mate Bruno Greiling (VM Energy Corse Germany). From then on, the Spaniard controlled the race and did not let victory slip from his grasp. "I got off to a good start from third position and was able to control the field in the lead. That was a perfect debut for me in the German Kart Championship."
 

Behind them, an exciting battle for the other podium places developed. Noah Nölken (DUTT Motorsport by Fenster.com) was the only driver from the chasing group to finish without a time penalty and was classified in second place. Aron Weeda (Henza Racing Team), Joelina Denzel (Ebert Motorsport) and Ben Götz (Ebert Motorsport) completed the podium positions.

Championship standings X30 Junior:
1st Ben Götz (151 points)
2nd Tom Wickop (143 points)
3rd Aron Weeda (115 points)
4th Joelina Denzel (105 points)
5th Carlos Nees (104 points)

X30 Senior: Heavy rain causes race to be cancelled - Aaron Garcia Lopez is honoured as the winner

Lars Ramaer (Haupt Racing Team) continued his strong form from Mariembourg and was the fastest driver in qualifying in Mülsen. However, the heats and super heats showed the enormous power density in the strong field of 47 riders. Niklas Hirsch (Ebert Motorsport) temporarily took the overall lead on Saturday evening, before Aaron Garcia Lopez (CV Performance X JP Motorsport) pushed himself to the front of the grid for the final with a convincing performance on Sunday.

An approaching storm made for difficult conditions in the final race. Heavy rain set in shortly before the start, so the race was opened on a wet track. However, the conditions continued to deteriorate so that after a slow phase and a short restart, the race organisers abandoned the final after eight laps for safety reasons. As more than 50 per cent of the race distance had been completed, the final was scored with half points for all finishers.
 

The winner was Aaron Garcia Lopez ahead of Kevin Lantinga (RMW Motorsport) and Lutz Ohsenbrink (KSL Racing Team), who made up ten places despite the short race time. Lukas Horcicka (Martin Horcicka) and Roxanne Lantinga (RMW Motorsport) completed the top five. ‘That was a crazy race. We were only concerned with keeping the kart on the track, and the cancellation was justified. A win is a win, and we'll build on that going forward,’ said the first-placed driver from Spain, summarising his impressions.

Championship standings X30 Senior:
1st Lars Ramaer (136 points)
2nd Aaron Garcia Lopez (134 points)
3rd Kevin Lantinga (110 points)
4th Marius Bonconseil (95 points)
5th Quinten Van Leeuwen (93 points)

After the intense races in Mülsen, the focus is already on the next event: the third round of the season is scheduled for 25 to 27 July in Ampfing. At the Schweppermannring in Oberbayern, the drivers will once again duel for important points - after all, the race weekend marks the halfway point of this year's DKM season.